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Pakistani orphan school to utilize $100,000 Zayed Prize money to promote organic farming 

Ch Mohammed Akhtar (center), the Founding Chairman of Kashmir Orphan Relief Trust (KORT) with students Sumaiya Bibi (left) and Kinza Bibi after winning the Zayed Sustainability Prize for the best Global School in South Asia at Expo City in Dubai, UAE on December 1, 2023. (Photo courtesy: @UNinPak/X)
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Updated 10 December 2023
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Pakistani orphan school to utilize $100,000 Zayed Prize money to promote organic farming 

  • The KORT Education Complex in Azad Kashmir won the prize at COP28 in Dubai for its organic farming, water conservation project 
  • With prize money, students and school management also plan to install sensor taps to create public awareness about water conservation 
Updated 10 December 2023
Aamir Saeed

ISLAMABAD: A Pakistani orphan school, which won the prestigious Zayed Sustainability Prize of $100,000 at the COP28 climate conference in Dubai, has planned to utilize the funds for the promotion of organic farming and water conservation in the South Asian country, the management and students said on Saturday. 

The KORT (Kashmir Orphan Relief Trust) Education Complex, one of the largest orphan schools in Mirpur, Azad Kashmir, was declared the best ‘Global School’ in South Asia for its innovative project on organic farming and water conservation at the UN climate conference. It was competing for the prize against two other finalists from Bangladesh and India. 

Two young representatives of the school, Sumiya Bibi and Kinza Bibi, received the award from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al-Nahyan at Dubai Expo City. The Zayed Sustainability Prize honors the legacy of UAE’s founding father Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al-Nahyan by rewarding small and medium enterprises, non-profit organizations and high schools addressing health, food, energy, water and climate-related challenges. 

“We are thankful to the UAE government for recognizing our efforts to fight the climate change through education and awareness. We will be using the award money to promote organic farming and water conservation in our area in Kashmir,” Zaib-un-Nisa, the school principal, told Arab News over the phone. 

“The KORT will be working on promotion of biogas and biofertilizers to maintain the ecosystem and spread awareness at a large scale.” 

Pakistan ranks among one of the most vulnerable countries to the impacts of climate change, facing water scarcity as its annual water availability falls below 1,000 cubic meters per person. 

Sumiya and Kinza, both second-year students, lead the project at their school where they have been growing different vegetables including cabbage, onions, potatoes and some fruits by using compost and water conservation techniques. 

“We recycle the kitchen waste into compost for our organic farming at the school premises to fulfil the nutritional needs of students living in the hostel,” Sumiya said. 

The KORT Education Complex is spread over 7.5 hectares in the heart of Mirpur city and houses some 550 students who were orphaned in 2005 deadly earthquake in the area. It was set up in 2016 by a philanthropist to provide education, boarding and lodging facilities to orphaned children. 

Around 25 students are working on the “micro project” of organic farming and water conservation in the school which they aim to expand to other schools and colleges in the area through collaboration. 

“Pakistan is badly affected by adverse impacts of climate change including smog, water scarcity and food security, and this led us to an idea of setting up a small garden in our school to work on organic farming and water conservation,” Sumiya said. 

Kinza, who leads the water conservation part, said at least 36 percent of daily use water used to be wasted due to traditional running taps, but now they were conserving around 40 percent of it through sensor taps. 

“The installation of sensor taps is costly, but [it is] worth spending on them as they help save the water,” she said, adding they would be utilizing the prize money to install sensor taps in some public areas to create awareness about water conservation. 

Topics: KORT Education Complex Zayed Sustainability Prize

Pakistani diplomat, 178 devotees visit Sufi shrine in Indian capital amid tense ties

Updated 5 sec ago
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Pakistani diplomat, 178 devotees visit Sufi shrine in Indian capital amid tense ties

  • Amir Khusro, a revered mystic, is celebrated for shaping Indo-Islamic culture through music and poetry
  • Religious tourism between the two states has persisted despite their strained relations since August 2019
Updated 5 sec ago
SAIMA SHABBIR

ISLAMABAD: A senior Pakistani diplomat on Wednesday paid tribute at the shrine of a 13th-century Muslim mystic in New Delhi, joining 178 devotees from his country who traveled to India to mark the saint’s death anniversary, even as diplomatic ties between the two countries remain strained.
Amir Khusro, a revered Sufi and disciple of Nizamuddin Aulia, is celebrated for shaping Indo-Islamic culture through his poetry, music and promotion of the Persian and Hindavi languages.
Despite the downgrading of bilateral relations since August 2019, when India revoked the special constitutional status of the disputed Himalayan region of Kashmir, religious tourism between the two countries has persisted.
“The Charge d’ Affaires of Pakistan to India, Mr. Saad Ahmad Warraich, laid the traditional chaddar [a decorative cloth] on behalf of the Government and people of Pakistan at the shrine of the famous mystic saint, Hazrat Amir Khusro (RA), in New Delhi, today,” the Pakistani High Commission said in a statement.
“A group of 178 Pakistani Zaireen [devotees] visiting India to participate in the 721 Urs celebrations of Hazrat Amir Khusro (RA) were also present on the occasion,” it added.
The Urs is an annual commemoration of a Sufi saint’s death anniversary, observed as a spiritual reunion with the divine.
According to the statement, the Pakistani diplomat and religious devotees were warmly received at the shrine by its caretaker.
The visit was organized under the 1974 Pakistan-India Protocol on Visits to Religious Shrines, which facilitates reciprocal religious tourism between the two countries.
The development comes as Pakistan recently issued nearly 6,000 visas to Indian Sikhs to visit Pakistan for the Baisakhi festival, one of Sikhism’s holiest celebrations, marking the spring harvest and the founding of the Khalsa in 1699.
Thousands of pilgrims gathered at Gurdwara Panja Sahib in the Pakistani city of Hasan Abdal, believed to bear the handprint of Guru Nanak, the founder of the Sikh faith.
Many Indian pilgrims remain in Pakistan, visiting other sacred sites including Nankana Sahib, the birthplace of Guru Nanak, and Gurdwara Darbar Sahib in Kartarpur.

Topics: Pakistan Pakistan India Ties Hazrat Amir Khusro

Hungarian FM to visit Pakistan today with high-level delegation to explore business opportunities

Updated 17 April 2025
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Hungarian FM to visit Pakistan today with high-level delegation to explore business opportunities

  • Pakistan and Hungary to sign agreements on culture, heritage and visas during foreign minister’s visit 
  • Deepening collaboration in trade, energy and investment sectors focus of both governments, says Pakistan
Updated 17 April 2025
SAIMA SHABBIR

ISLAMABAD: Hungary’s Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó is scheduled to arrive in Pakistan today, Thursday, with a high-level delegation to explore business opportunities in the country, Pakistan’s foreign office said. 

Szijjártó is touring the country Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar’s invitation, the foreign office said, adding that the two will hold delegation-level talks after holding one-on-one discussions. 

“Deepening collaboration in economic, trade, energy and investment sectors is the focus of the two governments,” the foreign office said on Wednesday. 

It said various memoranda of understanding (MoUs) and an agreement on cooperation in the fields of culture (2025-2027), archaeology and cultural heritage, and for abolition of visas for holders of diplomatic passports will be signed between the two countries on the occasion. 

“This would be FM Szijjártó’s second visit to Pakistan, aimed at lending positive impetus to enhanced bilateral cooperation and mutually rewarding economic partnership,” the statement said. 

Pakistan enjoys cordial relations with Hungary and this year Islamabad will mark 60 years of the establishment of its diplomatic relations with the country. The two countries enjoy cooperation in energy, with Hungarian oil and gas company MOL Group actively investing in Pakistan’s oil and gas exploration sector since the early 2000s.

MOL Pakistan has invested heavily in exploration and production, especially in Pakistan’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. 

Pakistan has pursued agreements in trade, energy, tourism, livestock, mining and minerals and other priority sectors with regional allies and Gulf countries in recent months. Islamabad hopes to attract foreign investment in its priority sectors to achieve sustainable growth. 

Pakistan formed the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC) in June 2023 to attract international investment in these sectors, mainly from Gulf countries. The SIFC says it aims to fast-track decisions related to investments. 

Topics: Peter Szijjarto Hungary

Karachi braces for heatwave this week as mercury soars in southern Pakistan

Updated 16 April 2025
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Karachi braces for heatwave this week as mercury soars in southern Pakistan

  • Starting this Sunday, Karachi’s temperature may surge close to 40 degrees Celsius, says meteorologist
  • More relief centers will be set up providing water and first aid to citizens, says commissioner’s office
Updated 16 April 2025
NAIMAT KHAN

KARACHI: Authorities in Pakistan’s largest city of Karachi are bracing for a heatwave expected to hit the metropolis next Sunday, with the mercury already surging to high levels in some parts of the southern Sindh province. 
The Pakistan Meteorological Department forecast “heatwave conditions” are likely to continue in Sindh, South Punjab and Balochistan till Apr. 18. It said that a shallow westerly wave is expected to affect the upper parts of the country from Wednesday afternoon until Apr. 20.
The highest temperature during the day in Sindh was recorded in Nawabshah, 47° C., as per the Met Office. The temperature in other cities of Sindh such as Larkana and Jacobabad surged to 46° C.
“Mainly hot and dry weather is expected over most parts of the country, while very hot in southern parts,” the Met Office said. “However, dust/thunderstorm-rain is expected at isolated places in upper Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Potohar region, Islamabad, northeast Punjab, Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan during (evening/night).”
Meteorologist Anjum Zaigham told Arab News that a heatwave situation is anticipated in Karachi from Sunday onwards. He said the temperature in the city these days is “more or less normal,” ranging between 34 to 37 degrees Celsius. 
“Starting this coming Sunday, there will be an increase in the intensity of heat in Karachi, and it is expected that the temperature may reach close to 40 degrees Celsius, potentially creating a heatwave-like situation,” Zaigham said. 
He noted that high humidity, particularly in the morning, contributes to a higher “feels like” temperature.
“From this coming Sunday until Wednesday or Thursday, a heatwave like situation may develop in Karachi,” he said. 
Relief stalls were set up in different districts of Karachi, with the commissioner’s office spokesperson saying more roadside relief centers will be established to provide water and first aid in case of emergency.
Climate change is exacerbating heat waves in Pakistan, leading to more frequent extreme temperatures. Pakistan ranks among the top ten most vulnerable to climate change impacts and also faces increased risks of untimely downpours, floods and droughts.
These heat waves contribute to various illnesses, significant economic losses and weather-related deaths during the summer season. A deadly heat wave in Karachi in 2015 resulted in over 2,000 deaths, while devastating floods in 2022 killed approximately 1,700 people and affected over 33 million nationwide, requiring extensive rebuilding efforts.

Topics: Karachi heat wave

Bodies of eight Pakistani nationals killed in Iran to be repatriated today, says envoy

Updated 37 min 23 sec ago
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Bodies of eight Pakistani nationals killed in Iran to be repatriated today, says envoy

  • Pakistan’s envoy to Iran says Islamabad will send military plane to repatriate bodies for urgent burial
  • Baloch separatists claimed responsibility for killing eight Pakistanis in Sistan-Baluchestan last week
Updated 37 min 23 sec ago
Arab News Pakistan

ISLAMABAD: The bodies of eight Pakistani nationals killed in Iran last week will be repatriated to the country early Thursday, Pakistan’s ambassador to Iran announced on Wednesday, saying that a military plane would bring back the corpses for urgent burial. 
Pakistan on Saturday confirmed eight of its nationals were killed in the Mehrestan County of Iran’s Sistan-Baluchestan province, which borders Pakistan. The attack was claimed by the Balochistan National Army (BNA), one of several separatist outfits operating in Pakistan’s southwestern Balochistan province. 
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, during a televised address to the federal cabinet on Tuesday, hoped Iran would immediately arrest the killers and bring them to justice.
“All arrangements have been completed for sending mortal remains of 8 of our nationals to Bahawalpur tonight,” Muhammad Mudassir Tipu, Pakistan’s ambassador to Iran, said on social media platform X.
“To honor the departed souls, our leadership is sending military plane for urgent burial.”

Tipu said the Iranian dignitaries will be paying their respects to the bodies before sending them to Pakistan. 
IRAN ASSURES ‘FULL COOPERATION’
Earlier on Wednesday, Iran’s Foreign Minister Seyyed Abbas Araghchi condoled the killing of the Pakistani nationals and assured Islamabad of “full cooperation” in bringing the perpetrators to justice, Pakistan’s foreign office said.
Araghchi spoke to Pakistan’s Foreign Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar in a telephone call, the foreign office said.
“Wherein the latter while offering condolences on the tragic death of eight Pakistanis in Iran assured full cooperation in bringing the perpetrators to justice and repatriating the mortal remains of the victims,” the statement said.
Thousands of Pakistanis, mostly from economically disadvantaged areas, frequently cross into Iran to take up informal work in sectors such as vehicle repair, construction and agriculture.
Pakistan’s southwestern Balochistan province, which borders Iran and Afghanistan, has faced a low-level insurgency for nearly two decades. Baloch separatist groups accuse the central government of exploiting the region’s natural resources such as gold and copper, without providing benefits to the local population.
Islamabad denies these allegations, asserting that it is committed to improving the lives of Baloch residents through various development projects.

Topics: Pakistan Iran Pakistani nationals Pakistan Iran border

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Pakistan may import crude oil from US to lower tariff burden — official

Updated 16 April 2025
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Pakistan may import crude oil from US to lower tariff burden — official

  • Countries are scrambling to find ways to lower US tariff burdens, which include buying more American oil
  • High-level Pakistani delegation is scheduled to travel to US to discuss American tariffs, trade imbalance
Updated 16 April 2025
Ismail Dilawar

KARACHI: Pakistan’s government is mulling “very good options” which range from importing crude oil from the United States (US) to abolishing tariffs on American imports, an official privy to the matter said on Wednesday, as Islamabad attempts to offset a trade imbalance that has triggered higher tariffs from Washington.
US President Donald Trump has imposed a 10 percent baseline tariff on all imports to the US and higher duties on dozens of other countries. Pakistan faces a 29 percent tariff due to a trade surplus with the US of about $3.6 billion, although that is subject to the 90-day pause Trump announced last week.
The US is the largest buyer of Pakistan’s textile goods, importing goods worth $5.43 billion last year through June, according to State Bank of Pakistan. In return, cash-strapped Pakistan imported $1.88 billion worth of American goods, resulting in the trade imbalance.
Countries are scrambling to find ways to lower their US tariff burdens, and Pakistan is no different. Pakistan’s Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb said last week Islamabad will send a high-level delegation to Washington to discuss the American tariffs.
“There have been talks of Pakistan potentially importing oil, soya been (oil) and cotton from the US. That’s already it,” an official who spoke to Arab News on condition of anonymity as he was not authorized to speak to media, said.
The finance ministry did not respond to Arab News’ request for a comment till the filing of this report.
The official said the Pakistani delegation will inquire about the expectations of the American government regarding trade, which could include abolishing duties or non-tariff barriers against US products.
“Or they may ask us to buy more cotton from them,” the official said. 
A senior official from Pakistan’s commerce ministry who spoke on condition of anonymity as well, said the discussions were at an “immature stage” and further meetings would be held to finalize them. 
“What decisions are taken, what we offer to them, all options are being examined,” he said. “Everything is on the cards but what is finalized, that cannot be said right now.”
Pakistan spends about $17 billion annually on oil imports, most of which come from the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia. Pakistan is also counted among the largest buyers of cotton, which it uses as raw material for its huge textile industry. Most of Pakistan’s cotton imports come from the US.
As per official data, Pakistan spent more than half a billion dollars ($578 million) last year on the import of 204,890 tons of raw cotton and 119,845 tons of soya bean oil after the local harvest was found to be in poor quality.
In 2023, Pakistan began buying discounted Russian crude oil banned from European markets due to Russia’s war in Ukraine. Muhammad Waqas Ghani, head of research at the Karachi-based JS Global Capital Ltd., said Pakistan faces limitations in diversifying its product slate when it comes to Russian crude oil.
He said this was because Russian crude oil yields a higher output of furnace oil. a less desirable fuel in the country’s evolving energy mix. 
“Importing US crude could offer access to a wider range of crude grades, better aligned with Pakistan’s long-term goal of phasing out furnace oil,” Ghani explained. “This move would also open doors for improved trade terms and potentially pave the way for tariff relief which is our primary objective for now.”
‘OTHER VERY GOOD OPTIONS’
Pakistan’s cotton production has been hit hard by low quality of seeds and climate-induced calamities such as floods caused by excessive rains.
“Apart from that (US oil import) there are other very good options which are being discussed,” the official said. 
However, he confirmed that none of these options had been finalized yet as the delegation would want to meet the American officials and gauge Washington’s expectations.
“Let’s listen to them first,” he said. 
Pakistan’s financial experts and independent think tanks have advised Islamabad to establish trade agreements with emerging economies such as Africa or the Central Asian Republics (CARs) or reinforce existing partnerships with China or the Middle East. 
Financial experts have also called upon the country to use America’s imposition of tariffs as an opportunity and diversity its exports market to other regions to mitigate potential losses.

Topics: Pakistan US Ties Pakistan economy Pakistan oil refinery US tariffs Trump tariffs

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